Combination pillow and clothing article

ABSTRACT

A combination pillow and clothing article is configurable between a first configuration and a second configuration. The combination pillow and clothing article includes a first pillow portion, a second pillow portion, and a jumpsuit. The first pillow portion includes a cavity. The second pillow portion is detachably coupled to the first pillow portion. The jumpsuit is coupled to each of the first pillow portion and the second pillow portion. In the first configuration, the first pillow portion and the second pillow portion are coupled together. The jumpsuit is positioned at least partially within the cavity of the first pillow portion. In the second configuration, the first pillow portion and the second pillow portion are detached from each other and spaced apart. At least a portion of the jumpsuit extends between the first pillow portion and the second pillow portion.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 63/121,579, filed Dec. 4, 2020, the entire contents ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The present invention relates to a convertible pillow, and moreparticularly to a pillow that converts to a clothing article.

SUMMARY

In one aspect, a combination pillow and clothing article is configurablebetween a first configuration and a second configuration. Thecombination pillow and clothing article includes a first pillow portion,a second pillow portion, and a jumpsuit. The first pillow portionincludes a cavity. The second pillow portion is detachably coupled tothe first pillow portion. The jumpsuit is coupled to each of the firstpillow portion and the second pillow portion. In the firstconfiguration, the first pillow portion and the second pillow portionare coupled together. The jumpsuit is positioned at least partiallywithin the cavity of the first pillow portion. In the secondconfiguration, the first pillow portion and the second pillow portionare detached from each other and spaced apart. At least a portion of thejumpsuit extends between the first pillow portion and the second pillowportion.

In another aspect, a combination pillow and clothing article isconfigurable between a first configuration and a second configuration.The combination pillow and clothing article includes a first pillowportion, a second pillow portion, a shirt portion, and pants portion.The first pillow portion includes a cavity. The second pillow portion isdetachably coupled to the first pillow portion. The shirt portion iscoupled to the first pillow portion. The pants portion are coupled tothe second pillow portion. In the first configuration, the first pillowportion and the second pillow portion are coupled together. The shirtportion is positioned at least partially within the cavity of the firstpillow portion. In the second configuration, the first pillow portionand the second pillow portion are detached from each other and spacedapart. The shirt portion and pants portion are deployed and able to beworn by a user.

In another aspect, a combination pillow and clothing article isconfigurable between a first configuration and a second configuration.The combination pillow and clothing article includes a first pillowportion, a second pillow portion, and a jumpsuit. The first pillowportion includes a cavity. The second pillow portion is detachablycoupled to the first pillow portion. The jumpsuit is coupled to each ofthe first pillow portion and the second pillow portion. The jumpsuitincludes a shirt portion and a pants portion. The pants portion iscoupled to the shirt portion. In the first configuration, the firstpillow portion and the second pillow portion are coupled together, andthe jumpsuit is positioned at least partially within the cavity of thefirst pillow portion. In the second configuration, the first pillowportion and the second pillow portion are detached from each other andspaced apart such that at least a portion of the jumpsuit extendsbetween the first pillow portion and the second pillow portion, thefirst pillow portion is configured to function as a hood, and the secondpillow portion is coupled to a seat of the pants portion of thejumpsuit.

Other features and aspects of the invention will become apparent byconsideration of the following detailed description and accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a front view of an example combination pillow andclothing article in a first configuration.

FIG. 2 depicts a rear view of the example combination pillow andclothing article of FIG. 1 in the first configuration.

FIG. 3 depicts a front view of the example combination pillow andclothing article of FIG. 1 in a second configuration.

FIG. 4 depicts a rear view of the example combination pillow andclothing article of FIG. 1 in the second configuration.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Before any independent embodiments of the invention are explained indetail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in itsapplication to the details of construction and the arrangement ofcomponents set forth in the following description or illustrated in thefollowing drawings. The invention is capable of other independentembodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in variousways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminologyused herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regardedas limiting.

An example combination pillow and clothing article 10 that istransformable between a first configuration and a second configurationis described herein. FIGS. 1 and 2 depict the combination pillow andclothing article 10 in the first configuration 14, which is a pillow inthis example embodiment. The pillow is formed by a first pillow portion18 and a second pillow portion 22. In the first configuration, the firstand second pillow portions 18, 22 cooperate to form a pillow having agenerally continuous outer periphery. As illustrated, the continuousouter periphery of the pillow in the first configuration 14 forms agenerally circularly-shaped pillow. Each of the first and second pillowportions 18, 22 are approximately the same size and shape in the firstconfiguration 14. Alternatively, the first and second pillow portions18, 22 may be different sizes. For example, the first pillow portion 18may be significantly smaller or larger than (i.e., half the size of,twice the size of) the second pillow portion 22. In the illustratedexample, each of the first and second pillow portions 18, 22 isgenerally semi-circular in shape. Alternatively, the first and secondpillow portions 18, 22 may each be a different shape, such as a square,a rectangle, a triangle, etc.

With reference to FIG. 2, at least one of the first pillow portion 18and the second pillow portion 22 includes a cavity. In the illustratedembodiment, the first pillow portion 18 includes a first cavity 26 andthe second pillow portion includes a second cavity 30. Though notvisible from the exterior of the pillow and clothing article 10 in thefirst configuration 14, the first and second cavities 26, 30 areillustrated in FIG. 2 with dashed lines, illustrating an inner lining ofthe respective pillow portion 18, 22 that define the respective cavity26, 30. The clothing article of the combination pillow and clothingarticle 10 is positioned at least partially within one or both of thecavities 26, 30 when the combination pillow and clothing article 10 isin the first configuration 14. When the clothing article of thecombination pillow and clothing article 10 is positioned in one or bothof the cavities 26, 30, the clothing article acts as a filling materialfor one or both of the first pillow portion 18 and the second pillowportion 22.

When in the first configuration 14, the combination pillow and clothingarticle 10 depicts a character image formed by the coupled first andsecond pillow portions 18, 22. The character image may be a tiger, asdepicted, or may be another character image. Other examples of characterimages include movie or television characters, animated characters,animals, humans, inanimate objects, fantasy creatures or objects, orother articles, whether real or imagined (hereinafter collectivelyreferred to as a character image). Different character images mayinclude but are not limited to: a ladybug, a polar bear, a dog, a wolf,a bear, a cow, a cat, a mouse, a monkey, a frog, a unicorn, a horse, adragon, a lizard, a giraffe, an elephant, a hippopotamus, a hedgehog, aturtle, a panda, or a rabbit. The pillow may include a number ofappendages 34 attached to the first pillow portion 18 and/or the secondpillow portion 22 that correspond to and further add to the likeness ofthe character image. Appendages 34 may include paws, ears, noses,antennae, horns, tails, hair, fur, wings, etc., which correspond to thecharacter image formed by the first and second pillow portions 18, 22.Additionally, other character image features (e.g., eyes, a nose, amouth, etc.) may be provided on the fabric of the first and secondpillow portions 18, 22 to further convey attributes of the characterimage.

The second pillow portion 22 is detachably coupled to the first pillowportion 18. Fasteners 38 may be used to couple the first pillow portion18 to the second pillow portion 22. In some examples, one or more of thefasteners 38 is coupled to the pillow portion 18, 22 at or adjacent toan appendage 34 (e.g., a paw) of the character figure. In otherembodiments, the fasteners 38 may be located elsewhere, such as on aninner or outer surface of each of the first and second pillow portions18, 22. In the illustrated embodiment, for instance, the fasteners 38are located on an exterior surface of the second pillow portion 22(shown in FIG. 4—only two fasteners 38 shown on the exterior rearsurface of the second pillow portion 22) and an interior surface of thefirst pillow portion 18 (shown in FIGS. 1 and 3). In FIG. 1, illustratedfasteners 38 represent the pair of fasteners 38 located in the firstcavity 26 of the first pillow portion 18 and the corresponding pair offasteners 38 located on the exterior front surface of the second pillowportion 22 fastened together. Some embodiments may further include atleast some of the fasteners 38 located on an exterior rear surface ofthe first pillow portion 18 (shown in FIG. 4). The fasteners 38 may bealigned such that, when coupled together, an end 42 of the first pillowportion 18 abuts and/or overlaps an end 46 of the second pillow portion22. The fasteners 38 may be snaps, as shown, or may be any othersuitable fastener, including but not limited to buttons, hook and loopmaterial, hooks, ties, etc. The illustrated snaps 38 may includemagnetic snaps that have a magnetic attraction between the mating snaphalves to facilitate interconnection of the snaps 38.

To convert the combination pillow and clothing article 10 from the firstconfiguration 14 to the second configuration 50, the fasteners 38 aredisconnected and a clothing article portion 54 is removed from one orboth of the cavities 26, 30 by moving the first pillow portion 18 awayfrom the second pillow portion 22 until the clothing article portion 54is fully extended between the two pillow portions 18, 22. To transformthe combination pillow and clothing article 10 from the secondconfiguration 50 to the first configuration 14, the clothing articleportion 54 is gathered and placed within one or both of the cavities 26,30. The fasteners 38 are then connected to attach the second pillowportion 22 to the first pillow portion 18.

FIGS. 3 and 4 depict the combination pillow and clothing article 10 inthe second configuration 50, which is illustrated in the exemplaryembodiment as a jumpsuit (having a shirt portion 58 and a pants portion62 integrally attached to each other) with an attached hood (e.g., firstpillow portion 18 acts as a hood for the user's head when the user iswearing the clothing article portion 54). As used herein and in theappended claims, the term “jumpsuit” includes, among other articles ofclothing, costumes, sleepwear, leisurewear, or the like. The shirtportion 58 is sized and configured to cover at least portions of auser's torso, and can also cover at least portions of the user's arms(e.g., sleeves—which could be long or short sleeves). The pants portion62 is sized and configured to cover at least a portion of a user's legs(e.g., could be regular-length pants, capri pants, or shorts). In someembodiments, the pants portion 62 could include integratedfeet/socks/foot coverings as well. In some embodiments, the clothingarticle portion 54 may instead include a shirt portion 58 and a pantsportion 62 that are separate from each other or that may be removablycoupled to each other. In some embodiments having a shirt portion 58 anda pants portion 62 that are separate, the shirt portion 58 may be pulledfrom the first cavity 26 and the pants portion 62 may be separatelypulled from the second cavity 30 in order to convert the combinationpillow and clothing article 10 from the first configuration 14 to thesecond configuration 50. When the combination pillow and clothingarticle 10 is in the second configuration 50, the first and secondpillow portions 18, 22 are detached from one another and spaced apartsuch that at least a part of the clothing article portion 54 extendsbetween the first and second pillow portions 18, 22.

In the illustrated embodiment, the second pillow portion 22 is coupledto a back-side or seat 66 of the jumpsuit (or to a back-side or seat ofa pair of pants in other embodiments). In some embodiments, the secondpillow portion 22 may function as an integrated seating pad coupleddirectly to the seat 66 of the pants portion 62. In such embodiments,the second pillow portion 22 may optionally further include at least asection of the second pillow portion 22 filled with one or more of afoam, a fiber stuffing, or beans, or any other suitable filling for apillow. In some embodiments, the second pillow portion 22 may be shapedand/or sized such that it resembles a tail or other appendage 34 of theuser as part of a costume. The second pillow portion 22 may be connectedto the pants portion 62 such that an unattached section of the secondpillow portion 22 forms an opening to the second cavity 30. Asillustrated in FIG. 4, this unattached section of the second pillowportion 22 forming the opening to the second cavity is positionedbetween the attached section of the second pillow portion 22 and thepants portion 62 so that the opening is hidden from view when thecombination pillow and clothing article 10 is in the secondconfiguration 50. This configuration may allow for ease of placement andremoval of the pants portion 62 when converting between configurations14, 50. In some embodiments, however, the second pillow portion 22 maybe connected to the pants portion 62 about an entire periphery of theend 46 of the second pillow portion 22.

As shown in FIG. 3, the first pillow portion 18 is connected to theshirt portion 58 of the clothing article portion 54 such that the firstpillow portion 18 forms a hood that a user may (or may not) wear on hisor her head. In some embodiments, an unattached section of the firstpillow portion 18 forms an opening 70 to the first cavity 26 of thefirst pillow portion 18, thereby creating the hood. The first cavity 26,therefore, communicates with an interior of the shirt portion 58.

Also shown in FIG. 3, the clothing article portion 54 may furtherinclude one or more fasteners 74, such as the illustrated zipper, toallow a user to put on and take off the clothing article portion 54. Thefasteners 74 may be located on one or both of the shirt portion 58 andthe pants portion 62. In some embodiments, one type of fastener 74 islocated on the shirt portion 58 while another type of fastener islocated on the pants portion 62. Fasteners 74 may include zippers,snaps, buttons, hook-and-loop segments, ties, and the like. Otherfeatures may be included on one or both of the shirt portion 58 andpants portion 62, including pockets, appendages, pass-through holes (toreach pockets of pants worn under the clothing article portion 54, forinstance), or the like.

The combination pillow and clothing article 10 provides amulti-functional item. In the first configuration 14, the pillow can beused to rest a user's head and also provides a soft pillow with acharacter image that resembles a plush toy or animal. In the secondconfiguration 50, the clothing article portion 54 and first pillowportion 18 together define an article of clothing having a hood the usercan wear as a costume, sleepwear, leisurewear, or the like. In theillustrated embodiment, both of the pillow portions 18, 22 and theclothing article portion 54 are representative of the same characterimage, such that a common or consistent theme is evident between both ofthe first and second configurations 14, 50. More specifically, asillustrated, the clothing article portion 54 is colored and striped torepresent a tiger, consistent with the features and markings on thefirst and second pillow portions 18, 22. The one or more cavities 26, 30provide the storage for the clothing article portion 54 when thecombination pillow and clothing article 10 is in the first configuration14. This can eliminate the need for the user requiring aseparate/additional carrying container for the combination pillow andclothing article 10 when the clothing article portion 54 is not beingworn by the user.

Although the invention has been described in detail with reference tocertain preferred embodiments, variations and modifications exist withinthe scope and spirit of one or more independent aspects of the inventionas described.

What is claimed is:
 1. A combination pillow and clothing articleconfigurable between a first configuration and a second configuration,the combination pillow and clothing article comprising: a first pillowportion having a cavity; a second pillow portion detachably coupled tothe first pillow portion; a jumpsuit coupled to each of the first pillowportion and the second pillow portion; wherein, in the firstconfiguration, the first pillow portion and the second pillow portionare coupled together, and the jumpsuit is positioned at least partiallywithin the cavity of the first pillow portion; and wherein, in thesecond configuration, the first pillow portion and the second pillowportion are detached from each other and spaced apart such that at leasta portion of the jumpsuit extends between the first pillow portion andthe second pillow portion.
 2. The combination pillow and clothingarticle of claim 1, wherein the cavity is a first cavity, the secondpillow portion includes a second cavity, and in the first configuration,the jumpsuit is positioned at least partially within the first cavityand at least partially within the second cavity.
 3. The combinationpillow and clothing article of claim 1, further comprising at least onefastener, wherein the at least one fastener detachably couples thesecond pillow portion to the first pillow portion.
 4. The combinationpillow and clothing article of claim 1, wherein the jumpsuit includes azipper.
 5. The combination pillow and clothing article of claim 1,wherein, in the first configuration, the first pillow portion and thesecond pillow portion cooperate to form a pillow having a generallycontinuous outer periphery.
 6. The combination pillow and clothingarticle of claim 1, wherein a character image is formed by the coupledfirst pillow portion and second pillow portion when the combinationpillow and clothing article is in the first configuration.
 7. Thecombination pillow and clothing article of claim 6, further comprisingappendages attached to each of the first pillow portion and the secondpillow portion, the appendages corresponding to the character image. 8.The combination pillow and clothing article of claim 1, wherein thefirst pillow portion and the second pillow portion are approximately thesame size and shape.
 9. The combination pillow and clothing article ofclaim 8, wherein each of the first pillow portion and the second pillowportion is generally semi-circular in shape.
 10. The combination pillowand clothing article of claim 1, wherein the second pillow portion iscoupled to a seat of the jumpsuit.
 11. The combination pillow andclothing article of claim 1, wherein, in the second configuration, thefirst pillow portion is configured to function as a hood.
 12. Thecombination pillow and clothing article of claim 1, wherein the jumpsuitincludes a shirt portion and a pants portion.
 13. The combination pillowand clothing article of claim 12, wherein the shirt portion is coupledto the first pillow portion.
 14. The combination pillow and clothingarticle of claim 12, wherein the pants portion is coupled to the secondpillow portion.
 15. The combination pillow and clothing article of claim12, wherein the shirt portion includes sleeves.
 16. The combinationpillow and clothing article of claim 12, wherein the pants portionincludes pant legs.
 17. The combination pillow and clothing article ofclaim 12, wherein the shirt portion is integrated as one piece with thepants portion.
 18. A combination pillow and clothing articleconfigurable between a first configuration and a second configuration,the combination pillow and clothing article comprising: a first pillowportion having a cavity; a second pillow portion detachably coupled tothe first pillow portion; a shirt portion coupled to the first pillowportion; pants portion coupled to the second pillow portion; wherein, inthe first configuration, the first pillow portion and the second pillowportion are coupled together, and the shirt portion is positioned atleast partially within the cavity of the first pillow portion; andwherein, in the second configuration, the first pillow portion and thesecond pillow portion are detached from each other and spaced apart suchthat the shirt portion and pants portion are deployed and able to beworn.
 19. The combination pillow and clothing article of claim 18,wherein, in the second configuration, the first pillow portion isconfigured to function as a hood
 20. The combination pillow and clothingarticle of claim 18, wherein, in the first configuration, the pantsportion are positioned at least partially within the cavity of the firstpillow portion.
 21. The combination pillow and clothing article of claim18, wherein the shirt portion and the pants portion are coupled to eachother.
 22. The combination pillow and clothing article of claim 18,wherein the cavity is a first cavity, and the second pillow portionincludes a second cavity.
 23. The combination pillow and clothingarticle of claim 22, wherein, in the first configuration, the shirtportion is positioned at least partially within the first cavity and atleast partially within the second cavity.
 24. The combination pillow andclothing article of claim 23, wherein, in the first configuration, thepants portion is positioned at least partially within the first cavityand at least partially within the second cavity.
 25. The combinationpillow and clothing article of claim 23, wherein, in the firstconfiguration, the shirt portion is positioned at least partially withinthe first cavity and the pants portion is positioned at least partiallywithin the second cavity.
 26. The combination pillow and clothingarticle of claim 18, further comprising at least one fastener, whereinthe at least one fastener detachably couples the second pillow portionto the first pillow portion.
 27. The combination pillow and clothingarticle of claim 18, wherein a character image is formed by the coupledfirst pillow portion and second pillow portion when the combinationpillow and clothing article is in the first configuration.
 28. Thecombination pillow and clothing article of claim 18, wherein the secondpillow portion is coupled to a seat of the pants portion.
 29. Thecombination pillow and clothing article of claim 18, wherein the shirtportion is integrated as one piece with the pants portion.
 30. Acombination pillow and clothing article configurable between a firstconfiguration and a second configuration, the combination pillow andclothing article comprising: a first pillow portion having a cavity; asecond pillow portion detachably coupled to the first pillow portion; ajumpsuit coupled to each of the first pillow portion and the secondpillow portion, the jumpsuit including a shirt portion and a pantsportion coupled to the shirt portion; wherein, in the firstconfiguration, the first pillow portion and the second pillow portionare coupled together, and the jumpsuit is positioned at least partiallywithin the cavity of the first pillow portion; and wherein, in thesecond configuration, the first pillow portion and the second pillowportion are detached from each other and spaced apart such that at leasta portion of the jumpsuit extends between the first pillow portion andthe second pillow portion, the first pillow portion is configured tofunction as a hood, and the second pillow portion is coupled to a seatof the pants portion of the jumpsuit.